France-based grocery chain Carrefour is participating in a new nappy recycling scheme in Paris.
Working alongside nappy brand Pampers and recycling company TerraCycle, the retailer is looking to play its part in helping French parents dispose of used nappies in a more environmentally friendly manner.
Parents throughout the Ile-de-France region can now throw used baby nappies, irrespective of brand, into one of the connected bins located in five Carrefour stores – from there, they will be taken away to be recycled. The nappy recycling collection scheme is a test to see if a more extensive programme might work in the future.
There are no existing used nappy collection schemes in France, and millions of nappies are thrown away each day. It is clearly an area where new waste and recycling initiatives are required, on a global scale, if parents are to reduce their carbon footprint.
The Carrefour nappy recycling collection points – which are located at stores in Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris Auteuil, Chatillon Gabriel Péri, Saint Ouen, and Rueil-Malmaison-Colmar – will stay in place until the end of November. At that point all stakeholders will assess the feasibility of scaling up the scheme.
Cellulose contained in nappies can be recycled to make furniture, while the plastic can be used for making bottle caps or bins for the nappies. Pampers has already introduced a number of other used nappy collection pilot schemes in Europe.
To use the bins, consumers will need to download the Pampers Recycling app, locate the nearest bin and check its status. Once at the location they are required to activate Bluetooth on their phone, and open the app to access bin.
Bertrand Swiderski, Carrefour Group’s corporate social responsibility director, said: “Baby nappies have a vital role in the lives of young parents and those of their children, but there is not yet an organised collection and recycling system in place in France for them.
“By teaming up with Pampers and TerraCycle, we have come up with a concrete solution for our customers.”
Laetitia Xoual, Pampers’ brand manager for France, added: “Collecting used nappies is key in giving these products a second lease of life – regardless of the technological solution that ends up being used (recycling, composting, etc.)
“This pilot scheme is an opportunity for us to learn about this collection model with the parents who will be using the in-store connected bins, and with our partners working with us on this project.”
Read more about retail recycling schemes on Green Retail World
